Internet introductions have never been my strong suit. Without a warm handshake and a cold beverage, the cyber meet and greet can often feel distant and unsatisfying. As the newest WanderBlogger in the neighborhood, it’s my instinct to knock on your screens with a nervous smile and a plate of homemade cookies. But, given our circumstances, my gesture of friendship will have to take a slightly different form. So, where the recipe calls for chocolate chips, I have substituted some sweet .JPEG morsels for you to feast on as I quickly catch you up on the first twenty-five years of my young life.
As a Northwest kid, my childhood can be accurately represented in the simple strokes of a paint-by-numbers portrait: Birkenstock brown for the footwear, grass-stained green for the knees, and a splash of basic blue for an ocean or river backdrop. From hikes on my dad’s shoulders to ski lessons on wobbly four-year-old limbs, my roots grew deep into the Pacific Northwest. After eighteen years in the greater Portland area, I moved to Walla Walla, Washington to pursue a degree in Sociology and Gender Studies at Whitman College. Hopped up on wine and sweet onions, I graduated in 2008 and moved to Chicago for a change of scenery. As much as I loved the Windy City, I couldn’t help but notice that my bright blue and green winter coats stood in stark contrast to the Midwest brownstones; and, much to my roommate’s playful disgust, I always managed to litter the bathtub with brown footprints – evidence, she said, of a Northwest kid.
After two years of scrubbing my prints, I finally gave in, and made plans to return to the Pacific Coast. Taking a slight detour of seven months and eighteen countries, my girlfriend and I backpacked through Europe before landing in Oregon in late January. Shortly thereafter, my passion for writing and travel combined in a wonderful way, and I was humbled to receive a nomination for the Food & Drink Category for the 2011 WanderWomen Write Contest.
My involvement with Wanderlust and Lipstick now continues via the Flying Salmon. I am thrilled to celebrate my return to Portland by following the theme of “all things Northwest” as previously penned by Andrea Duchon. In the spirit of WaL’s mission, I plan to highlight the sights and sounds of Northwest women on a rural and urban scale – from regional female musicians and festivals to women-owned restaurants and hotels. Whether you are a visitor or a local, I hope to shed light on the Northwest as an excellent destination for women’s travel. This sub-focus, of course, will not be to the exclusion of the otherwise gender-neutral attractions that the Northwest has to offer.
That said, no introduction is complete without mutual exchange, so – as your virtual tour guide for everything Northwest – I look forward to hearing from you. In the meantime, help yourself to another round of my childhood morsels.